Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Increases Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. raised its stake in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,746 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 728 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in 3M were worth $1,303,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MMM. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in 3M by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,001 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank raised its stake in shares of 3M by 3.1% during the second quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 3,326 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of 3M by 11.4% during the first quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,020 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 3M by 2.0% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,302 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc grew its holdings in 3M by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 2,638 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $270,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on 3M from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on 3M from $120.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com cut 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of 3M from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, 3M presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $124.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at 3M

In other 3M news, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 4,364 shares in the company, valued at $541,659.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of 3M stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total transaction of $700,635.50. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 174,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,486,484.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $541,659.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Stock Up 1.4 %

NYSE:MMM opened at $132.03 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $120.79 and a 200-day moving average of $106.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.06 billion, a PE ratio of -10.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.95. 3M has a 52 week low of $71.12 and a 52 week high of $134.99.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.85 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 112.92% and a net margin of 3.08%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.17 EPS. Analysts predict that 3M will post 7.2 EPS for the current year.

3M Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is presently -22.01%.

3M Profile

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.